Best Home Theater Projector in 2017 – Reviews and Buyer’s Guide

Despite being 3D capable, offering a 1080p image with excellent brightness and color, this HD projector is priced under 1000$. All this and much more comes in a small and good looking package which was too good for us to pass up.

The native resolution of this model is 1920x1080 with an aspect ratio of 16:9. For that reason, this unit is geared towards showing movies and other HD content in high detail. Aside from that, six other video modes help you adjust to the source material. Lovers of 3D films will also find this model delivers a stunning image with enough details for an immersive experience. This unit isn’t only for films and video, it also excellent for games with no noticeable lag, and has all the inputs you’ll need.

Picture quality is impressive for the price and due to a 13,000:1 contrast ratio as well as 2000 ANSI lumens of brightness. Scenes with lots of white and black content look incredible, but colors are accurate as well. As far as image size, this home cinema projector can work with anything from a 60″ to an 180″ diagonal. Throw distance ranges from about 4 feet to 20 feet, so this unit is best for smaller to mid-sized rooms.

The SmartEco technology reduces power consumption according to the video content. This feature saves electricity, but also helps the projector provide better depth in regards to black levels. In fact, it this mode offers a better viewing experience than the normal mode.

The Benq w1070 1080p 3d home theater projector is an impressive piece of technology, but it has a few downsides. For one, it can take up to five minutes to power up. Aside from that, it has a tiny amount of light leakage and can overheat so make sure it has enough room.

As more and more 4K models appear on the market, HD projectors like the Optoma HD27 become cheaper and better. This 1080p model is well suited for a home theater for movies (2D and 3D) but also works well with games. At this price-tag, it’s an attractive alternative to a big LED TV.

The HD27 has a brightness rating of 3200 lumens, so there’s no need to remove all sources of light to enjoy a movie. A contrast rating of 25,000:1 ensures that colors are vibrant, but doesn’t provide very dark black tones. With a 1920x1080 resolution and 16:9 aspect ratio, you can watch Blue-ray movies, HDTV and play games. There are a few other video modes as well, so you won’t have problems matching the source material.

When playing FPS and other fast-paced games, lag isn’t a problem. There’s a special setting called Game mode as well that boosts colors. Despite the fact that this movie projector is based on a single DLP chip, it doesn’t have significant problems with rainbow artifacts. To find them, you’ll have to look hard at spots with higher contrast.

Like many similar models, this one has a mono sound system integrated. It might look good on paper, but in reality, you’ll want to turn to home surround sound systems to get the best experience.
Finally, this unit is in the long-throw category. This means that you should place it at least 10 feet from your home theater projector screen to get a good size picture.

As we mentioned, the things that we didn’t like about this model is the limited performance when it comes to darker scenes. Moreover, rainbow artifacts are noticeable sometimes and the fan cooling it is quite loud, which many users report in their reviews.

For a relatively high price, this BenQ projector offers amazing image quality both in 2D and 3D. Its native aspect ratio of 16:9 is ideal for HDTV and movies. What’s more, it’s an excellent choice for gamers who need the lowest lag possible.

This model is heavier than its counterparts, so it’s not the most portable of units. But, it makes up for it by having a great integrated sound system. The speakers can fill a larger room which is useful when if you carry this unit around and don’t want to move your dedicated sound system. For more volume and stereo, you can connect this BenQ though the audio output to an external system.

Image quality is stunning with eye-pleasing colors and shadow details. This is due to an ANSI brightness of 2,200 lumens and a contrast ratio of 15,000:1. There are also special color calibration options to help you fine tune everything to your liking. Despite having a single DLP chip design, it shows fewer rainbow artifacts than similar models. However, they can appear often enough in b&w movies to lower the viewing experience.

The throw distance on this HD home theater projector ranges from about 4 to 20 feet, and the big zoom feature maximizes it. However, for the best results, we recommend placing the unit no further than 15 feet. Image size can be set to anything from 40″ to almost 240″, but also has a sweet spot. Picture quality can vary depending on ambient light, but this unit works fine even in rooms that have some lighting.
Rainbow artifacts are the biggest downside of this projector, especially in black and white films. Other than that, some parts feel cheap, and this model is not suitable for backyard movies if it’s going to be set upup further away.

The Epson 5040UB is HD projector with pixel shifting technology for better image quality when reproducing 4K material. It has a lot of improvements over its predecessor, the 5030UB, like motorized focus and zoom, and support for HDMI, HDCP 2.2, HDR and WCG. Once set up correctly, it puts out a stunning image and provides great value for the money.

4K enhancement works by shifting pixels half a pixel up and to the side which provides more detail for Ultra HD content. With a wide color gamut and HDR support through HDMI2.0a and HDCP 2.2, you can enjoy more vivid colors than before. To focus, zoom and shift the lens, all you have to do is use the provided remote, instead of turning wheels. What’s more, there are ten memory positions so that you can save different lens and picture adjustments for later use. There’s also enough memory to make aspect ratio presets.

Blue-ray content on this home theater projector looks stunning with vibrant colors, great dark levels, and shadows. But, the thing that makes this Epson unit stand out is its support for HDMI 2.0 and 4K material. It can display the improved color gamut of UHD video which makes a noticeable difference.

Another important thing to mention is this model’s ability to handle motion. This projector handles fast-paced games with ease and shows few artifacts and minimal judder. With CFI technology (Creative Frame Interpolation) you get a crisp, sharp image during faster scenes.
Although we were thoroughly impressed with the performance of this projector in our home theater room, it does have a few flaws. There are slight issues with misalignment which are solved by careful calibration. Other than that, there is some stuttering in long panning shots, but not everyone will notice them.

This Sony home theater projector is the only native 4K model on our test and for a good reason. Finding anything as good in this price-range is hard. This model offers stunning image quality with excellent brightness, black levels, and vivid colors. It also comes packed with useful features and 3D support.

As it stands, there’s still more 1080p than UHD content. Anyone who buys a 4k home theater projector will probably watch more material that isn’t 4K native. Either way, this unit provides stunning images. The colors are very natural with high contrast, and enhanced details, while digital noise is almost nonexistent.

Lovers of full HD 3D can use RF glasses with this projector and enjoy an immersive experience with minimal ghosting or brightness issues. Unfortunately, they will also have to buy glasses separately.
For those who like a DIY approach to their home theater design and set up, this model offers lots of calibration options. There are extensive lens shift and zoom features, and the lens is centered in front for easier installation. Once everything is running, we recommend that you sit no further back than the width of your screen to get the most out of 4K. The differences between 1080p and UHD are best noticed at this distance. But, sitting even two screen widths away, you will still be able to discern between the two.

Unlike its predescess or this 4K home projector does not suffer from significant lag, making it perfect for gaming. The main drawback of this model is the lack of a manual/automatic iris. When used in a blacked-out home theater room, it’s hard not to notice a small deficiency in black levels. Moreover, this kind of iris can stabilize brightness during the lamp’s life and give black colors a boost during darker scenes.